The Girl Who Played With Fire is the prequel to an equally captivating book called The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. Stieg Larsson continues telling the story of the life of a clever and unusual girl named Lisbeth Salander. After some unfortunate events she ends being at the top of the most wanted list in Sweden as the main suspect for three murders. Although Salander is the main character, the book actually switches back and forth from multiple people’s point of view. By giving different characters perspectives the book has many layers of dramatic irony and draws the reader in by making them feel as if they are a part of solving the murder mystery. I would recommend this book to sophisticated high school readers who enjoy a book that will put them a little bit on edge. 

It is a book filled with very vivid and detailed descriptions of the characters and setting which plays a big role in drawing the reader in and giving them a connection with the book. By giving the reader those details and the perspectives of multiple characters you are able to really feel like you are in the story and appreciate the writing style. As a reader, being able to know so much through the details, while still not being able to solve the mystery on your own will really draw you in, I found myself immersed in this book without realizing it. Even though it is the second book in the series that does not slow it down, it has a brand new storyline that uses the setting from the last book to create a whole new adventure by drawing in new characters and connections. 

Because it is a prequel the book starts off about a year after where the original book left off. The book begins with Salander away traveling in tropical islands, she experiences a hurricane with some slightly traumatic events that send her back to Sweden. It is there that she uses her incredible hacking skills to hack into her old friend and partly enemy Blomkvist’s computer, she discovers something that sets her on edge and she goes in to investigate. During her investigations Salander talks to Blomkvists friends from work and ends up wanted as the main suspect for their murders. Blomkvist, his friends from work, and the detectives set out first to find Salander and then to solve the case to prove that she is not guilty. The book quickly gets complicated and from then on you can truly only understand how many layers there are by reading the book. 

Once the murders have occured, another murder is discovered and the search increases in intensity. The author adds mystery by leaving Salander out of the narration for a couple hundred pages, so that you as a reader can truly get immersed in the investigation. New suspects are drawn into the plot after abductions and abuses are witnessed, and Salander is finally drawn back into the storyline. The book peters to an end with an exciting fight scene, someone being buried alive, a knight in shining armor, and finally ending on a cliffhanger of will they survive? 

If you are looking for a high intensity, murder mystery novel to read then I’ve got the one for you. The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo is a fantastic story filled with so many twists and turns, interesting characters, and descriptive details that you can’t help but love it. It is an average length read, with such a massive scale of details that is rarely found in books. By the end of the story you’ll find yourself hooked and continuously impressed at Salanders cleverness.